Legal Definitions - ordinis beneficium

Definition: Ordinis beneficium is a Latin term that means "the benefit of order." In civil law, it refers to the privilege of a surety, which requires the creditor to first exhaust the principal debtor's property before seeking payment from the surety.

Discussion: A surety is a person who agrees to be responsible for another person's debt or obligation. Ordinis beneficium is a legal protection for sureties, which ensures that they are not held liable for a debt until the creditor has made all reasonable efforts to collect from the principal debtor. This protection is important because it prevents creditors from unfairly burdening sureties with debts that they may not be able to pay.

Example: Suppose that John borrows $10,000 from a bank and asks his friend, Jane, to act as his surety. If John is unable to repay the loan, the bank may seek payment from Jane. However, if Jane invokes the ordinis beneficium, the bank must first attempt to collect the debt from John's assets before pursuing Jane for payment.

Explanation: In this example, the ordinis beneficium protects Jane from being held liable for John's debt until the bank has exhausted all other options for collecting payment. This ensures that Jane is not unfairly burdened with a debt that she did not incur and cannot afford to pay.